Grow Up: The Sequel
by firestorm557
Summary: The continuation of my previous story Grow Up. the rift between Alan and his family continues to grow ever wider. AU movie take on what happens after Jeff and Alan talk in his office. Please read AN first..............
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: **so this is the sequel to my previous story "Grow Up". i got so many requests for a sequel that i decided, what the hell? so here it is. it is NOT going to be a one-shot, or two or three even. it is infact going to be quite lengthy. You do, however, have to read "Grow Up" to understand what is going on here, because it jumps right in where the first story leaves off. so please sit back and enjoy!! and review!! always review!!

**Disclaimer: **i do not and never will own Thunderbirds or and of its associated characters, a fact that will make me eternally sad...**  
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**Grow Up: The Sequel**

Alan was fuming as he exited his father's office, he couldn't even think. He just knew that he needed to get out of there; out of the office, out of the house, and hell if he had his way off of the whole damn island!! As he rounded the corner, he was confronted by his brothers. Gordon, Scott, and Virgil stood before him, arms crossed and faces smirking.

"Get out of my way."

"Oh attitude!!" Gordon mocked

"Yeah Alan, what's the matter? Did widdle baby bwother get in trouble again?"

"Seriously Alan, you guys haven't fought like that since you blew up the Chem. lab. You must have seriously fucked something up this time," said Virgil.

"See Virg, don't you know? Alan is making up for all of the stupid shit that we never did growing up."

Alan didn't respond. He physically shouldered his way in between his brothers and continued down the hallway towards the sanctity of his bedroom. Once there he slammed the door with enough force to rattle the pictures that hung on his walls. Door locked, he finally let his emotions push through to the surface. The tears that he had not let fall while arguing with his father now came back with a vengeance, and they slid in silent rivers sown his face, while his body slid down the door to sit on the floor.

_God, why is coming home always so terrible?_ His face still stung from where his father had slapped him. _Because my father doesn't understand me, that's why. Not my father, not my brothers, no one. They think that they are the only ones hurting from mom's death; they don't even stop to consider how I feel. They all just think of me as just an immature, emotional little kid. None of them want me around, and right now I sure as hell don't want anything to do with them, so why am I hanging around?_

Mind made up, he pushed himself up off of the floor and hastily scrubbed his tear streaked face. He quickly repacked the few things that he had managed to put away since coming home. _Why can't dad just accept me for the person that I am? I mean, he's always comparing me to my brothers. Why can't you speak more like Virgil? Why can't your grades be more like John's? Does he have any idea how hard it is to live up the standards of four older brothers? Not to mention the standards that have already been set because my father is Jeff Tracy, Billionaire Ex-Astronaut Entrepreneur, yadda yadda yadda. _As he packed Alan began to put the pieces together. _The only way that I am ever going to be accepted in this family is by changing. No wonder dad doesn't let me be a Thunderbird. To be a Thunderbird I have to be my brothers: polite, smart, un-emotional, following orders. And he doesn't think that I can do that. Well I guess that it's about time that I changed their perception of me. They don't like me for who I am? Well that's fine, because from this point on, that person no longer exists._

Alan picked up his bags and headed down to the landing strip, taking the long way around to avoid any further confrontation with either his father or his brothers. As he approached the landing strip, he was glad to see the familiar figure of Parker Just finishing some maintenance on Penny's car. Finally, something today was going the way he wanted it to.

"Hi Parker."

Parker turned around, surprised at the sudden company he suddenly found himself with. "Why hello young Mr. Tracy!" He noticed the bags that were in his hands. "Oy! What have you got there?"

Alright, now for the hard part. "Actually Parker, I was wondering if you would take me back to school."

"But Mr. Tracy! You've just gotten home but a few hours ago!"

"Parker, dad and I had a huge fight after we got back." Well at least that was the truth. Now it was time to blur the lines a little bit. "He decided that it would be best to put some distance between us, so I'm going back to school for the week."

"Well……" he seemed unsure. The fights between the youngest Tracy son and the Tracy patriarch were legendary, but never so bad as to put physical distance between them. But still…… "I really should clear this with your father."

"Parker, please. He less time that he has to spend near me right now is best for all parties involved." And now for the clincher. "But I suppose if you don't want to make the flight I can always just fly myself and leave the plane in the hangar for one of my brothers to pick up later." He started moving towards the hangar bay, knowing full well that Parker would not let him fly himself back to school.

"Now wait just a minute, that won't be necessary." Ah, just like he thought. "Let's get those bags of yours loaded up, if we leave now you'll be back before the sun even sets." Parker quickly stowed them in the rear compartment of the pink car.

Alan smiled as he got situated in the back seat. "Thank you Parker. I'm sure that dad will really appreciate this. And, well, I do, anyway."

"Of course Mr. Tracy, it's not really a problem at all." And with that, they were off, the car taking off smoothly from the runway.

Nobody noticed this take off, however, and nobody noticed the absence of its passengers, wrapped up as they were in their own plans for the afternoon.

**TBC...** so please review and let me know what you think!!


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: **thank you to everybody who reviewed!! this chapter is a little short, and just a warning chapter 3 is going to be even shorter!!! but that is my plan, frequent updates with smaller chapters, although i have to tell you i have already started working on chapter 4 and its going to be a whopper let me tell you!!! it has been brought to my attention that Alan is a little emo in this story. this is very much the truth. when i was writing this i really just felt like his character had had enough and he was past the breaking point, so now he had completely relented to what he thinks his family wants out of him, because he is tired of trying to defend his actions and himself to them. so thank you for reading, and thank you for reviewing!!!!!

Disclaimer: not mine, not now not ever**  
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**Chapter 2**

About half an hour into their flight, Alan and Parker had gone through all of the small talk that they could think of. After a few moments of silence, Alan spoke.

"Parker, did you know my mother?"

Parker was taken aback. He never heard the Tracy men speak of Lucille; he figured it just brought up too many painful memories for them. But then he realized something. Alan couldn't talk about his mother, because, really, he had been too young when she had died to really have any memory of her at all. He cleared his throat and prepared himself to speak on what he was sure would be a difficult subject.

"Well I only ever met your mother once myself, but from what I remember, she was a great woman, very kind." He paused, unsure whether or not to continue. "I, err, I could see why your father had fallen in love with her."

Alan didn't say anything for a moment, but a smile played over his features. "Thank you."

"I'm sorry sir, for what?"

"For talking about her. Nobody else ever does. My dad and my brothers, they all close down whenever you bring up the subject." Again, he paused. "I wish that I could remember her."

"I'm sorry Mr. Tracy. I wish that I could be more of a help, but that's all I really know."

"That's okay Parker. I've lived this long without knowing, I should be used to it by now."

The rest of the flight was continued in silence. Once safely in front of his dorm building, Alan got out of the car and looked up at the imposing image before him. Very few lights were on, since most people did return home for the holiday. _Well, I guess that means less people who will ask questions about why I came back early. _Parker had already removed his bags from the trunk and was waiting for him by the door. _All right, lets get started. _Parker quickly helped settle Alan once again into his room. When all was said and done, he stood by the door looking uncomfortable, staring at Alan. Parker could never remember him looking as defeated as he did right now; shoulders slumped, and there was a sadness that could be seen if you actually looked into his eyes.

"Alan, are you sure this is the best plan of action? You can still accompany me on the return flight."

Alan gave a small smile. Leave it to Parker to be the one to give him doubts. But no, he couldn't go back. Not yet. Not like this. "Thanks Parker, but this is something that I have to work out for myself, and right now this is the best place for me to do it."

"I guess, if you're sure………."

"Go Parker. Really, I'll be fine, believe me. Go back. Penny may need you, and you know how she hates to be kept waiting."

At that Parker reciprocated the small smile that Alan was giving him. "That she does." With that he turned back towards the door, but paused before exiting, and again turned towards Alan. "I hope that you are able to work out all that you need to Mr. Tracy."

"Thank you Parker, I hope so too."

With that, Parker turned and walked out the door. From his window, Alan watched Parker get into the car and maneuver it smoothly down the drive. He stayed by his window until he saw the car soar across the sky towards the island, a mere spec in the distance and the dying sunlight. Alan turned away and quickly made his way to the dining room, grabbing a sandwich and drink to take back with him to his room. Setting his dinner down on the desk, he quickly finished putting away the last of his belongings, and then reached for his school bag. He spread out all of his homework on his desk and took inventory of what needed to be done. There were several essays from his History and English courses, a lab report for Science, several dozen math equations and of course, his extra math essay.

_Well, I guess they say there's no time like the present. According to my family I have a lot of growing up to do. I guess a good place to start would be to pass this term. Let the transformation of Alan Tracy begin._

**TBC...**so please review!! chapter 3 coming very soon, as in, like tomorrow!! (i hope!!)_  
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	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: **alright so this chapter is REALLY short. its not even 500 words. but just consider it a stepping stone into chapter 4, which will be a lot longer, i promise. there is not any "Alan" in this chapter, or in the next 2 after that, sorry. this is the families take on how all this playing out. chapter 4 should be posted tomorrow, i hope, at the latest wednesday. so please just sit back and relax and enjoy the next installment of Grow Up: The Sequel. oh and review!! please review.

Disclaimer: still not mine**  
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**Chapter 3**

In the Tracy household, dinner was usually a family affair, but on this particular evening, no one was at all surprised at the absence of the youngest Tracy. They all had their own ideas as to where Alan was or what he was doing, but they all ended with the same result: he was off somewhere sulking. They had all seen it before. Letting him just blow off steam and come back on his own was usually the best way to handle situations such as these. So nobody questioned why there was one empty place at the table. They did however, question why there was two.

"Does Parker know that dinner's set?" questioned Gordon.

"Oh I'm sure he knows, but you know how meticulous he is when he comes to that car," said Penny.

"Yeah, he's almost as bad as you Virgil."

"Hey Scott, what's that suppose to mean?"

"Oh come on Virg we all know that you spend hours down in Two's hanger, making sure that there is not a fingerprint or smudge to be found."

"Yeah Scott, because you're soooo different when it comes to _your_ bird," smirked Gordon.

"Boys, we all care about the Birds equally as much. Now Oahana, would you mind setting aside plated for Alan and Parker?"

"Of course not Mr. Tracy," she said, bustling back into the kitchen.

As darkness settled over the island, the family moved into the rec room. Jeff and Penny were on the couch slowly sipping coffee while talking. Brains and Fermat quickly excused themselves to their lab, where no doubt one of Brains' experiments needed tinkering. Tintin had retired to her room straight after dinner. Virgil was settled in the lounger reading, and Scott and Gordon were involved in a pretty intense game of pool. This was the scene as Parker walked in to join them.

"M'Lady, I apologize for my absence."

"Oh not to worry Parker, we knew what you were up to."

"Shall we be returning home this evening M'Lady?"

"No Parker, we shall be retiring here for the evening. If, of course, that's all right with you Jeff dear?"

"Penny, when have you ever needed permission to spend time on the island? You know that you and Parker are more than always welcome to spend as much time as you would like here."

"Very good M'Lady. Mr. Tracy."

Just then Oahana came in with more coffee for Jeff and Penny.

"Pardon me, but might I trouble you for a spot of something to eat? All of this flying really takes it out of me."

"Of course Mr. Parker! Right this way."

As they headed towards the kitchen, everybody returned back to what they were doing, no one really catching the meaning of what Parker had said.

**TBC...**so leave me some comments and let me know what you think of it so far


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

The Tracy's had gone to be that night hoping for a better tomorrow. They were going to be in for a rude awakening.

Jeff Tracy sat at the breakfast table slowly sipping coffee and reading the news briefs that the office had sent over when his sons slowly shuffled in to the room and seated themselves at the table. Again, Alan's chair was vacant.

"Boys, did any of you have a chance to talk to Alan last night?" His boys looked at each other, each one shaking their heads.

"No dad, I can't remember seeing him at all last night."

Knowing that Alan had not even confided in Gordon, his usual confidant, made Jeff feel even worse about what had happened the previous day. Jeff was constantly butting heads with his youngest son, about grades or his actions both at school and at home. But rarely did it venture into the territory that it had yesterday. In fact he could remember only once when Alan had tried to talk to him about his mother. It was a couple of years ago; Alan must have been about 9 at the time, when he had walked into his office with a question about Lucy. But looking at that face, the blue eyes that could have easily been placed on Lucy's face, the nose, the cheekbones. It was just too much. Jeff couldn't even stand to look at him, it was just too much. He had sent Alan away, yelling and snapping at him much as he had done yesterday.

The more he thought back on the events of the previous day, the more remorse he felt. He very much wanted the chance to sit down with Alan and explain things. He had been deeply hurt by the accusations that Alan had hurled at him, but only because he now realized that most of what Alan had said had been true. He did think about Lucille every time he looked at Alan, and he did fear loosing him on a rescue. But that didn't mean that Jeff didn't love him.

As Parker and Penny entered the dining room, he noticed that his sons were looking at him. "Would one of you please go and get your brother down here for breakfast?"

As Parker poured himself a cup of coffee, he gave Jeff a very confused look. Surely he couldn't have forgotten……………..

"Begging your pardon, sir, but might I inquire as to who you are referring to?"

"Alan, Parker, I'm talking about Alan. Unless there is another son hidden around here that I wasn't aware of. Gordon, would you please? Oh and Gordon, please don't jump on top of him again. I don't need either of you sporting black eyes for the rest of the week."

Gordon was moving towards the door when Parker spoke again. "Again, begging your pardon, but he's not in his room, sir."

At this Gordon stopped and looked first at his dad, then at Parker, then back to his dad.

"What do you mean Parker?" Confusion colored Jeff's voice.

"Well sir, I took him back to his dormitory early last evening." Doubt was beginning to creep into Parkers mind. "He said that it was at your request."

"You did what? Why on earth would I want him to go back to school? He only just got home!"

"Well sir, I did question that myself. But he seemed so adamant about leaving, and it's just…….."

Jeff was still looking hard at Parker. "What Parker? It's just what?"

"Well sir, quite frankly, the arguments between the two of you are damn near legendary. So when he said that you and he had gotten into a pretty bad spot, I didn't really question the severity of the argument." Parker realized that he might have stepped over the line a bit. "Sir."

Jeff's face was still lined with anger. "Parker, that still does not explain to me why my son is no longer on this island."

"Mr. Tracy, he said that you thought it best to put some distance between the two of you for the rest of the week, presumably so that neither you nor him would do something that they regretted."

At that Jeff's face blanched. Was Alan afraid of him? Did he really think that Jeff didn't want him around?

"He told you that?"

"Well, not the regretting part exactly, that was my own assumption. But yes sir. He said that it would be best for everyone if he went away. And since he was only asking to go back to school, sir, I didn't question it further."

Jeff realized that his boys were looking at him, confusion and, maybe a little guilt, evident on their faces. It was Gordon that spoke.

"Dad? What is Parker talking about? Why did Alan think that he needed to leave the island?"

Jeff looked at his three sons and for a moment he considered not telling them what had happened; what was said, what he had done. But he realized that they needed to know the circumstances that had led to the absence of their baby brother…………

"Boys……….." he didn't even know where to start.

"Dad, why is Alan gone?" There it was, that look of guilt again, flashing across Scott's face. For the first time Jeff realized that it might not have been only his actions that had driven Alan from them.

"Boys, please. Let's move this into the lounge. I want to be able to conference John in. This is something that I only want to explain once."

The boys immediately got up and made their way to the lounge, followed by Penny, leaving only Parker and Jeff in the room.

"Mr. Tracy, sir, I am terribly sorry for what's happened. I didn't know…."

"Parker" Jeff interrupted. "Don't blame yourself. I have a feeling that we all had a part to play in this." Parker looked at him for a moment, and then nodded, turning and making his way into the lounge. Jeff followed and settled himself behind the desk at Command and Control. He pressed the button that would allow him to contact Thunderbird 5.

"This is Tracy Island to Thunderbird 5, come in Thunderbird 5." There was no answer. He looked at the clock. Yes, John should just be getting up. He tried again. "Tracy Island to Thunderbird 5, come in Thunderbird 5."

A moment later he saw the image of his other blond son, hastily trying to wipe the sleep from his eyes. "Morning dad, sorry, had a late night last night. The Australian authorities needed an 'eye in the sky' so to speak, to deal with a power outage on the coast. It was nothing major, well nothing that they couldn't handle on their own anyway, but they needed a little assistance. But anyway…….."

It was then that he realized that not only was he talking to his father, but to the rest of the household as well. Brains, Fermat, and Tintin had all entered the lounge, after having found the kitchen hastily abandoned.

"Dad? What is it? What's wrong?" His eyes quickly scanned the faces that were looking back at him, and realized "Where's Alan?"

"John, please. There are some things that we need to discuss."


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: **wow guys i am crazy sorry for the long delay. i don't really know what happened, writers block and crazy work schedule and my computer going all wonky. but anyways, for those of you waiting or it, here is chapter 5. chapter 6 is already written, so that should be up shortly as well. and no, there is no Alan in this chapter either, but there def is Alan in the next chapter, don't worry!!

Disclaimer: not mine, and that makes me sad**  
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**Chapter 5**

Jeff left nothing to the imagination as he was explaining what had transpired the day before. Minute after agonizing minute he talked, and he could see several eyes that seemed to be brighter by the end. Even he could feel the moisture starting to build up in his eyes.

He looked at his three earth-bound sons, and saw them all with heads down. This time it was Scott who spoke up first. "We didn't….God we didn't know…"

"Scott?" Jeff wanted an explanation to the guilty look each one of them was sporting. But it was Virgil who took up the story.

"We thought that you were just yelling about his little stunt with Thunderbird 1. We didn't know what you were really arguing about. And we…"

"We said some really awful things to him Dad. Things that he really didn't deserve." Gordon kept his eyes downcast, refusing to meet his father's eyes during his confession.

"What?" Now it was John's turn to chime in. "How could you guys? It must have been like rubbing salt into an open wound. What did you say to him?"

"John, that's not important right now, and frankly I don't think that I want to know." Jeff said sternly.

"But dad…"

"No dad, I think John's right. I mean, God, we hardly gave him the time of day when he came home yesterday, and how many months had it been since we'd seen him last? And how long did it take us to shut him down? I mean we had barely even said hello to him before we were belittling his contributions and making fun of him."

Jeff thought back to before the argument with Alan, to what had happened when they had all sat down to eat. So this is what had been bothering his sons.

"John, can you please check with Alan's locater and tell me where he is please?" Jeff's voice was soft and sad.

"I already have it on screen dad. He's still at school."

You could physically see Parker relax. He had been afraid that Alan might not be exactly were he had left him the day before.

"Dad, I have Tracy One prepped and ready to go in 10 minutes." Scott got up and headed to the door.

"Stop Scott." His voice still retained that quietness. "Parker, did Alan say anything to you before you left the school?"

"Well sir, I asked him if he was sure that it was what he wanted to do, if he was sure that he didn't want to accompany me back to the island. But he said that he had some things to work out, sir, and that it was the right place to do what he needed to do, sir."

"Thank you Parker." He had made a decision. "Sit down Scott."

"But dad, aren't we going to go get him? Bring him home?"

"No Scott, we're not."

This statement was met with exclamations from everybody, questioning his judgment.

"Dad, we're really going to just leave him there? I mean, he's upset! He thinks that we don't want him around! We need to do and bring him home!"

"Dad, I agree with Gordon." John chimed in. "I don't think that being by himself is a good idea right now."

"Boys, I understand your concerns, I do. But Alan has made a decision. He feels like he needs space right now to figure everything out. If we show up and make him come home before he thinks that he's ready, we would just be making the gap between him and this family even wider. I think that right now we just need to give him that space that he wants."

There was silence for a minute, and everyone took in what Jeff had said. "Alright dad," said Virgil, "if you think that's what's best, then I guess that's what we'll do."

"Thank you son. Now go and finish up breakfast, get ready for the day ahead." There were mumbled "yes sirs" from his sons as they trudged back into the kitchen. He turned back to John. "Will you let me know I he leaves the area? I want to give him space, but I don't want him running off on his own."

"Sure dad." There was a pause. "Dad, do you really think that this is a good idea?"

Jeff took his quiet sons question to heart. Did ht think that this was a good idea?

"No son, I don't. But I do think that it is the best option that we have right now. Please keep me informed about Alan."

"FAB dad. 5 out."

Jeff noticed that Brains was still in the room. "What can I do for you Brains?"

"W-w-well s-sir, I w-was w-w-wondering if I c-c-could talk to you ab-b-bout the compound that the k-k-k-children found on Th-Thunderbird 1 yesterday."

"Go ahead Brains. What are we dealing with?"

"W-well sir, it s-s-s-appears that it was meant to transmit w-what I can a-a-assume is our location, b-b-but the Bird's silo, as w-w-well as the alloy that all of the Th-Th-Th-Birds are m-m-m-constructed of, seems to have c-caused it to m-m-mal-not function properly. It w-won't be a problem."

"Thank you Brains." One problem down, another hundred or so to go.

TBC in chapter 6, coming soon, so tell me what you think of this one while you wait


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: **alright so here's the thing. at the end of the last chapter i made it so that the hood would not be coming to the island, like in the movie. thats also why in the story summery it is a AU version of the movie. is was suppose to be the same up to a point and then it was going to go in a different direction. but almost every review i got was about expecting the Hood in the next chapter or 2. so some things had to be changed. now, the hood will be appearing eventually, but not in the way that he did in the movie. and because of that this chapter had to be changed as well, so it is again, kind of like a filler chapter. the next one will be longer, i promise. sorry if this note sounded mean, i didn't mean for it to. Please read and review, and remember the Hood will be coming soon.

they are not mine, i swear...**  
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**Chapter 6**

Since Parker had brought him back to school, he had been throwing himself into his work. He hadn't really talked to anybody at home in over 3 days. Sure, they had called to offer some sort of apology, but Alan really wasn't in the mood to listen to speeches filled with false sentiments. Every time they called, he dimply told them that he was fine, no he didn't really feel like talking, yes he was sure that he didn't want to come home, and yes I really do have to go because I have a lot of work to do. Already he was just about done with all of his regular school work, and was just now starting on his extra math essay.

He read over several sections of his text and started writing. After about an hour of this, he hit a snag. He couldn't find the information that he wanted to explain why one of his theories worked in direct correlation to the hypothesis that his teacher had given him. He briefly contemplated leaving it as it was. Surely his math professor was smart enough to make the correlation on her own. _No, _he shook his head, _that's something the old Alan would do. The whole point of this is to change. Now think._

In the end, he came up with only one solution. The library of materials for this subject was just too vast. He needed some help narrowing the search field down some, or he would be at it for days. The teachers had all gone home for the afternoon, and Fermat was still on the island, enjoying his vacation, so he didn't want to pull him away from the time with his dad. _It must be nice to be able to spend time in the same room as your family and actually enjoy it._ He quickly pushed those thoughts from his head. He was left with one choice.

Locking his door to make sure that he had no unwanted guests, he took out his vidphone and settled himself in at his desk.

When John heard the console to his right start to beep, he quickly checked its source, and was pleasantly surprised to see that it was coming from Alan's vidphone. As far as John knew, this was the first time Alan had been the one to initiate contact with any of the family. He quickly patched he call over to the main screen. "Alan! Hi!"

"Hello John. I'm not pulling you away from anything important am I?"

"Of course not. So, what's going on? How have you been?"

"I'm fine John. I was actually hoping that you would be able to help me with this math essay that I've been working on."

John smiled. Out of all of his brothers, John had always been the one his brothers would turn to about problems with math. Virgil was a close second, but even he still sent John equations to read over sometimes. "No problem sprout. What are you working on?"

Alan explained what he was writing about and where he had run into his problem. "Yeah, Alan, I have just the thing you need in my own library, actually. I'll email the pages you'll need to you."

Alan just shook his head no. "No John, the title of the book will be just fine. I'll find the information on my own, thanks." John inwardly cringed a little. He hadn't meant to imply that Alan couldn't do it himself, he had just wanted to help. "Sure Alan, no problem." He sent the information through and saw Alan give a slight nod when he received it on screen.

"Thank you John, I'm sure this will be very helpful. There was also one other thing. I was wondering if you would mind reading my paper over when I was finished. I just want someone to double check that my theories and equations all work out correctly. But if you don't want to, or are too busy, I understand."

"No Alan, don't worry about it. Send it up when you're ready, and I'll definitely take a look at it." Alan gave him a small smile and a nod, but there was no warmth behind his expression. In fact, John realized that he had not really smiled or joked or even so much as chuckled during their whole conversation. Alan's eyes looked far too serious for someone of his age.

"Alan, are you sure you're all right? You seem a little down."

"I'm fine John. I'll send you my paper when it's finished. Thank you for your help." And with that he signed off, ending their conversation.

When the call ended, John had the sudden urge to call their father. Surely there was something going on with Alan. But then again, Alan had never really been this focused on school before. So maybe he was just really distracted by his schoolwork. He wanted to call his dad anyway. He was about to press the button that would connect Thunderbird 5 down to Tracy island when chatter started coming through the speakers. _Well I guess this will have to wait for a bit, _he thought, as he turned his attention back to the job at hand.

Hours later, John returned from the kitchen with a steaming mug of hot chocolate, one of his favorite nightly rituals. As he sat back sown in front of the console, he saw that he had received an email transmission from Alan. Along with the paper was a note. _Thank you for taking the time to read this. Please be honest with what you think._ John sat back and stared reading, and was astonished at the level of work that his baby brother had done. Alan had never shown and interest or aptitude for math before, but this paper was good. Really good.

When he was finished, he contacted Alan. When his face appeared on the screen, he noticed that Alan's face was full of apprehension. "So what did you think?"

"I read it. And let me tell you, it was good. I mean really good. All of the equations and theories that you used were sound. That's an 'A' paper for sure. You should take the rest of the night off to celebrate. Go catch a movie or something."

"Well thanks for reading it over John, I appreciate it. But I actually was able to get some other extra credit work from my teachers, and I really need to start on that. Maybe next weekend, though I doubt that I'll have the time then either. Anyway, I'll let you get back to your work. Good night John."

"Good night Alan." Now John really did call his dad. But to his surprise, his dad didn't seem concerned. "John, I wouldn't worry about it. I have to say it's kind of nice to hear that he's taking such an interest in school." John was not as easily convinced. "But dad, he seems so distant. It was just very un-Alan like."

"John, don't worry about it. I'm sure that when all of the boys return on Monday he'll be back to his old self. You'll see."

John could only hope that was true.

PLEASE REVIEW!! sorry if this chapter was a little boring, they get more exciting next time...


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: **well sports fans, i'm back with another chapter. this one is the longest of the bunch so far, but i am warning you, 8 and 9 are already written, and both of them are shorter than this. so enjoy the long chapter while you can (insert evil laugh here). any who, please read and enjoy, and as always review!!

Disclaimer: i do not own them, and for that i cry nightly...**  
**

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**Chapter 7**

But that was not he case. When Fermat and the rest of the boys returned to school, it seemed that Alan just alienated himself even more. He hardly spent anytime with them outside of the classroom. In truth, all Fermat really saw Alan doing was eating, working, or sleeping. That is when he saw him at all. It seemed to Fermat that the only time he ever really saw him was meal time and lights out. Most invitations extended from their friends were politely refused, and over the course of the term they stopped coming his way at all, but Alan didn't even seem to notice. In fact, he just seemed to draw into himself more and more everyday.

Midterms, finals, they came and went and soon it was end of term and it was again time to make the journey back to the island for the summer. Fermat was excited. He couldn't wait to get his hands, and brains, on some of the experiments that his father was working on. Brains had called Fermat a couple of days ago to tell him that he was on Thunderbird 5, and that he wouldn't be home until a couple days after the boys arrived on the island. But Alan knew that that wouldn't stop Fermat from running a few tests of his own when they got back.

Fermat was almost throwing his things into his suitcase, as if it would get them home faster. "And he said that he was working on this pr-prototype, of a device that allows you to m-move things with your m-mind. And he also b-been trying to develop a new, l-longer lasting battery pack for the hazard suits, and I have a c-couple of ideas for that that I th-think might expedite the process."

"I'm sure that your dad will appreciate the help Fermat."

Fermat looked over to Alan. He was methodically packing all of the things that he would need for the summer. But he seemed like he could care less about going home. Fermat decided that he was going to broach a subject that he had long ago left alone.

"So Alan, are you excited about going back to the island for break? I mean, you're just about 16 now, your father will probably let you sit in on some missions, at least." Fermat knew that bringing up the Thunderbirds training was a low blow, because it was sure to get Alan all riled up. But in truth, he missed Alan's emotional outbursts. So he wanted an outburst. A raised voice. Just… something. And he was sure that he would get at least a little something. But to his surprise, Alan just shrugged his shoulders and continued to pack his bag.

"I'm sure that my dad will start my training when he thinks that I am ready for that kind of responsibility." He paused. "But I will enjoy sleeping in my own bed again. And the sound of the ocean. I missed the sound of the ocean." Inwardly, Alan's stomach was doing a nervous jig. It had been many months since he had really seen or spoken to his family, and in truth he wasn't sure what kind of reception he would receive. _I'm a different person now. I've changed. I'm the person that they all wanted me to be. It should be fine._ Alan realized that he had missed the question that Fermat had directed his way. "I'm sorry Fermat, what did you ask?"

"Oh, I was just wondering if you were excited to show your dad your report card."

"Well I'm sure that he won't be as disappointed as he usually is, but I could have done better."

"But Alan! You brought up your grade in every single class! A's and B's! I don't think your dad is going to be disappointed at all!"

"Maybe. But I still should have done better."

Fermat didn't say anything more on the subject, but kept shooting concerned looks Alan's way.

An hour later, Alan and Fermat opened the door to find a vision in pink standing before them. "Hello boys!" She walked into the room and gave each of them a very warm hug, lingering a little longer on Alan.

"Lady Penelope, is everything alright? My father said that he was going to pick us up."

"Oh yes Alan dear, everything is just fine. I called your father and insisted that I come and bring you boys back for your holiday. I hardly got to see you at all last break, and I have a very important lunch date with the Prime Minister tomorrow, but I am flying to his estate this evening, so I wanted the chance to see you at least for a little bit. And it's a very good thing that I insisted, too."

Alan and Fermat looked at each other, confusion clear on their face. "Why is that?"

"Well your father got called away very suddenly not too long ago." She dropped her voice to speak in hushed tones. "A rock slide in Argentina. There have been several aftershocks, and your father and brothers are having a hard time relocating everybody from the area."

"But my brothers? Dad? They're all right?" Penny nodded. "Well then thank you very much for coming to get us then Lady Penelope." They began making their way to the fabulously pink car parked in the middle of the drive. With the car packed, they made their way out of the Wharton complex and soon took to the sky, on their way back to Tracy Island. There was plenty of small talk; the usual pleasantries, but Parker kept glancing at Alan through the rear view mirror.

Jeff and the boys had only just landed themselves as the car was coming down onto the landing strip, and eagerly met them; still grungy and grimy, as them exited the car. As the boys stepped out of the car, Jeff didn't care that he was still dirty from the mission. He grabbed Alan up in a fierce hug. "Alan, I'm so glad that you're home."

As Jeff stepped out of the embrace, Alan looked up at his father. "Hi dad." Before he had a chance to say anything else, he was being greeted by his brothers, whose goal seemed to be to transfer as much dirt and debris onto him as was possible.

"Hey Alan, did you hear about where we were?"

"Yeah, rock slide in Argentina."

"Yeah, Johnny boy over here finally got to get his hands dirty, instead of sitting on his butt in 5 all day."

"Hey, you try doing what I do up there for that long and see how well you do!"

"But anyway, it was pretty intense there for a little while, what with the aftershocks from the earthquake that started this whole damn thing… '

"That's great Virg, and I'm sure that I'll hear all about it at the debriefing, but now I really need to get cleaned up."

"He's right boys; we all could use a nice long shower before dinner. Penny, thank you so much for picking the boys up. Have a good time at the Prime Ministers Estate."

"Oh Jeff it's quite alright. I hope to be able to come and stay for a proper visit sometime soon. Boys." And with that she returned to the car and Parker seamlessly lifted it into the air, heading back toward England.

Dinner was a quiet affair, at least as far as Alan was concerned. He sat and listened to each of his brothers outline their part in the days mission, explaining every problem or success that they had faced. He just took in all of the information that was given, turning his attention to each of his brothers as they spoke.

After dinner, the family moved it outside to relax by the pool, enjoying the feel of the early evening air. Alan sat in one of the loungers paying no attention to what his brothers were doing in the water. That is, until he felt a wet _thwack!_ on his chest. He looked down to see the volleyball that his brothers had been playing with sitting on, and wetting, his lap.

"Alan!" Scott called, "why don't you come in? You're already wet! Take your mind off whatever it was that was causing you to be a million miles away."

"Well Scott, it is that time of the year again." Gordon said mysteriously.

"Wait, what time?" Virgil asked.

"Report card time! Duh Duh _Duh!!_"

"Oh, well no wonder he's distracted."

"Alan has nothing to be worried about regarding his report card!" Fermat said from his position from the poolside. All eyes turned first towards Fermat, then swung back and were focused solely on Alan.

Alan sighed. He really wished that Fermat hadn't said that.

"Well Alan, since we're talking about it, why don't you show it to me?" his father asked. Alan sighed again. He had been hoping not to do this in front of his entire family, but it was too late now. He pulled the folded piece of paper out of his pocket and handed it to his father. His brothers hurried out of the pool to get a look for themselves.

His father read through it, as well as the extensive notes that each of his teachers had written several times, before looking up and catching Alan's eyes. "Alan, this is….. this is very impressive, son. I'm very proud of you."

"Geeze Alan, who did you have to bribe to bring home grades like this? Ow!!" Gordon rubbed his side where John had elbowed him.

"Good job Alan, really. All of that hard work really paid off."

The rest of the evening passes without much excitement. The report card was not mentioned again, but Alan could tell that each of his brothers kept throwing incredulous glances his way.

Just as he was getting into bed, Alan was called to his fathers office. As he made his way into the room, he wasn't sure what to expect. His father was sitting behind the desk, cup of coffee in hand. "You wanted to see me dad?"

"Yes Alan. Are you all right? You were very quiet tonight."

"Yeah dad, I'm fine. I'm just tired. Finals really wore me out. I just need a good night's sleep, that's all."

Jeff looked at his son. He wanted to talk about what had happened between them the last time that they were in this office. But that conversation was not one that was going to be quick or easy to get through. And Alan did look tired. He had dark circles marring the skin under his eyes, and his skin was pale, like he hadn't spent any time outside in the past couple of months.

"Well Alan, you certainly have the grades to show for your hard work this term. I'm very proud of you."

"Thank you dad, I tried my best."

Jeff returned Alan's statement with a warm smile. "Well Alan. I wanted to let you know that even before you brought home your report card, I was planning on letting you start easing into training, sitting in on some of the more routine missions. But like I said Alan, I was very impressed. So I'm going to let you choose what you want to start with." Jeff leaned back in his chair, fully expecting Alan to start jumping for joy. He had already warned Scott that Alan may be taking Thunderbird 1 out for a ride in the next couple of days. But for the second time that day, Alan took Jeff by complete surprise.

"Well dad, I guess the most practical place for me to start would be with Thunderbird 5. It is the initial contact point for International Rescue. And it might take me a little while to get acclimated with space."

Jeff looked at Alan for a moment, waiting for him to change his mind, but then nodded. "Alright, I'll let John know that you'll be accompanying him back up to 5 tomorrow afternoon. I'm sure he'll be more than happy to have some company for a week or so."

Alan nodded. "Alright. Thank you dad. Good night." He turned and began walking to the door, when Jeff's voice stopped him.

"Alan, I want to spend some time with you before you head up to 5. Will you meet me back in here after breakfast?"

"Sure dad. I'll see you in the morning." And then he turned and left the room.

"Good night son" Jeff said, to nobody in particular. His mind had already moved forward to the events of the next morning. He hoped that it would have a positive outcome.

TBC... in chapter 8! But to get that one, you have to REVIEW this one first...


	8. Chapter 8

sorry for the delay, here is the next chapter. please read review and enjoy!

Not mine, never will be**  
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**Chapter 8**

Alan made his way to his father's office the next morning, a steaming cup of coffee in his hand for his dad at Oahna's request. He passed by his packed bag that was waiting for him at the end of the hallway. In a couple of hours he would be on his way to 5 with John. _I hope it's not as bad as Virgil says it is. Maybe I shouldn't have eaten such a large breakfast. _He had reached the office door, and he knocked, waiting for his dad's response. Hearing the affirmative, Alan pushed the door open.

His dad was sitting behind his desk, surrounded by papers and file folders. He set the mug down on a cleared section of the desk. "Here dad, you weren't at breakfast, so Oahana told me to bring this to you." He stepped back and took a seat facing his father.

"Hmm? Oh yes Alan, thank you. I wanted to get this paperwork out of the way so I wouldn't have to worry about it this afternoon. Are your brothers awake?"

"Yes they were all downstairs at breakfast."

"Good, good. So Alan. Your first trip up to 5. Are you excited?"

"I'm looking forward to it, yes."

"Don't let Scott or Virgil scare you with their stories about their first time on 5. Space hits everybody differently. I'm sure you'll do fine. In fact, you might even like it." He saw Alan nod in agreement, but to what part of what he had said he had no idea. They sat there for a few moments in silence. _Well, _Jeff thought, _I guess its time._ He cleared his throat.

"Alan, there are some things that I want to talk to you about, that I have been meaning to talk to you about. About last. . . "

Suddenly the alarm was blaring, drowning out his words. "Th-thunderbird 5 to Tracy Island."

"Go ahead Brains, what is it?"

"Sir, we just got a c-call from a m-mining group in Northern Africa. There has b-been a cave in, tr-trapping almost the entire t-t-team in the tunnel. They are requesting our as-s-sistance."

"FAB Brains, we're on our way. Keep me updated." He turned to suit up, but then looked at his youngest. His other 4 boys had already entered their portraits and were suiting up down below. "Alan…"

"It's alright dad, those people need you. We'll talk when you get back," he said with a sad smile on his face.

Jeff looked at him for another moment longer and then nodded. He pulled out the touch pad and started activating the system to set up base control. "Coordinate with Brains and keep track of what's going on from here."

"FAB dad."

With a final nod, Jeff stepped into his portrait and was whisked away. Alan took up his dad's chair and started to examine the information that was coming his way from the different monitors.

20 minutes later thunderbird 1 was touching down at the rescue site. Scott got out mobile control and started firing questions at the man who had called in the rescue. He quickly contacted Virgil. "Mobile control to Thunderbird 2, what is your eta?"

"We're about 2 minutes out."

"FAB Virgil, unload the mole when you land."

"FAB Scott. 2 out." Sure enough Scott could see the green behemoth in the distance, growing larger by the second. He had just finished syncing up mobile control when Virgil set his bird down flawlessly next to his own craft, and Gordon quickly unloaded the mole and brought it to the tunnel entrance, before joining the rest of his family by mobile control. Jeff turned to Scott.

"Alright Scott what's the situation?"

"The worker over there says that he was out here getting more supplies from the truck when a cloud of dust came pouring out of the tunnels entrance, and he found that the tunnel had collapsed partway down the way his team was mining. He says that there are 15 men in there."

"Alright Scott leave mobile control for now, it looks like we're going to need every set of hand that we've got. Alan, are you patched through?"

"Right here dad."

"Good, patching mobile control through to you. Keep an eye on the readouts, and keep us informed."

"FAB dad."

"Alright boys, lets go." Donning their helmets, they entered into the tunnel on foot, making sure that it was stable enough before bringing in the mole. The further down the tunnel that they went, the more a feeling of unease was starting to grow in Jeff's stomach.

"Dad, does this seem strange to you?" John said. "I mean, I haven't seen any equipment, or even any signs of recent activity. Something about this just doesn't feel right."

"I know what you mean John. I was feeling the same thing. Keep your eyes open boys."

They were more than half a mile into the tunnel when they first heard it. It was the crackling of electricity.

"Hello Jeff Tracy. Do you know who this is?"

Jeff whirled around, looking for the person the voice belonged to. "Who are you? What's going on?"

"Oh, you can call me the Hood. And I didn't really expect you to remember me. But you do remember my brother, Kyrano."

The uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach was growing ten-fold. "What do you want Hood?"

"You left me to die that day Jeff. And I want you to feel the same pain that I felt. Trapped with no hope of survival or rescue. I will leave you to suffer the same way you left me to suffer. You rescue people everyday Jeff. But who will rescue the rescuers?"

"Boys, move!!" The Tracy's started running towards the tunnels entrance. Suddenly the ground exploded in front of them, hurling them back in the direction they came from. That's when the ceiling started to tumble down.

TBC in chapter 9 please review!


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: **I AM SOOOOO SORRY!!!! i know that it has taken me forever to update this story. i was without my muse for a long time, and the story just wouldn't come to me. but my muse is back and ready to get back into the action, so here is the next chapter, i hope that if there is anyone out there still waiting to read this story that you read it and enjoy!! oh and i am just throwing it out there that i know nothing about engines or Thunderbird scematics, all of the specs in this story is purely from my own mind!! hope that doesn't deter any of you...

Disclaimer: not mine, but i can keep dreaming...

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**Chapter 9**

Alan sat there, his eyes wide with fear. What had just happened? He had heard the man that called himself the Hood talking to his father, and then there had been a loud noise. He wasn't able to get anything but static. Where was his family?

"Brains? What just happened?"

"I'm guessing expl-plosion, with a resulting cave in. Have you h-heard anything?"

"No, I'm not getting anything but static." No sooner did he say that, when he heard his dad's voice breaking through the static. "Brains! I can hear them! Can you boost the signal any?"

"Boosting signal n-now."

"Dad! Can you hear me? What happened?"

"Alan! The tunnel caved in on either side of us. It seemed as if they were rigged with explosives. We're trapped in here."

"Are you okay? Is everybody okay?"

"We're banged up pretty good, but no injuries that are life threatening. But we are going to need help, and fast."

"Dad?" But his dad had just said that they were all okay. Without thinking about it, he tried to raise Lady P on the coms, but there was no response.

"We don't have a lot of air in here Alan. We've managed to get the fires under control, but I don't know how much longer we're going to have with the air that's left."

Alan just sat there, trying to figure out what to do. Brains was up on 5. Short of bringing 5 out of orbit, there was nothing he could do from up there. Protocol was to contact the next available agent, but all of his brothers were with his father in that tunnel, and Lady P was still not responding to the hails. His head was spinning. Was there another protocol that he wasn't aware of? How could he not know? What was he going to do?

"Dad, protocol says to contact the next agent, but Lady Penelope is not responding. I don't know of anything else to do."

"Alan, Thunderbird 3 is still in her silo. It can get here faster than anything else."

Alan's head was spinning at what his dad was implying. "Dad, it's against protocol for anyone other than an I.R. agent to pilot one of the ships. I…"

"Alan! Forget protocol! We need you, Alan. Your family needs you!"

"But, but you said I wasn't ready!"

"You said that you were." His dad's voice was calm and steady, belying the intense situation that they currently found themselves in.

Something in Alan suddenly snapped. What the fuck was he doing? His family, his entire family, was stuck in a mining tunnel in Northern Africa. And he was sitting her debating protocol with his dad? Shit! What the fuck was he thinking? Adrenaline started pumping through his veins. Screw the book, and all of the rules that went along with it.

"FAB dad! I'm on my way. You guys hang tight. I'll be there as fast as I can."

Fermat had been in the room since he had heard the shouting. He looked at Alan questioningly as he got up and moved directly towards the entrance to Thunderbird 3's silo. "Let's go Fermat. I'm going to need your help." Fermat followed Alan in to the silo. "What's going on Alan?"

"My family's in trouble Fermat. And we're going to save them." As soon as the lift touched down, Alan was racing towards 3, with Fermat close behind. Climbing into the cockpit, Alan immediately began the start up procedures, Fermat taking a seat in the copilot's chair. Fermat didn't need to ask Alan if he knew what he was doing. He knew about the long hours that Alan had spent with the simulations for each of the birds, and he trusted him.

For his part, Alan was running over the schematics and specs for 3 in his head. How long did it take Thunderbird 1 to get there? 20 minutes? Well, 1 and 3 had almost the same engine models, so it should take roughly the same time to get there. Unless he used the extra fuel that was meant to push the giant Bird into orbit. That would cut off half the time, but how well would he be able to handle the craft in the atmosphere? He shook his head. His family was running out of air right now. He would use the extra fuel, and just handle the rough ride. There was no other option. With the Bird prepped, he saw the silo retreating, and began to ease the Bird from its resting place. Once he had 3 fully out of her silo, he opened her up a little more, and made sure that their course was locked in. He prepared to turn on the afterburners. "Hold on Fermat, this is going to get a little interesting." He began to count down. "Afterburners in 5,4,3,2,1. Afterburners are- whoa!!" The craft was shaking, and Alan had to quickly tighten his grip around the yoke and make several adjustments so that he could stay on course.

Fermat looked over at Alan, and what he saw was deep concentration. But he also saw something else. There was a fire in his eyes, and it was something that Fermat had not seen from Alan for months. Fermat had to smile. He was back. He had his best friend back. It just sucked that it had taken something like this to break Alan out of the funk that he had been in.

Alan leaned in to contact Thunderbird 5. "Brains? What's the situation with the Hood?"

"My r-readings show that he had b-b-entered Thunderbird 2 and is t-taking it to an as of yet unknown location, b-but I will be able to t-track the signal, so it sh-sh-shouldn't be a problem."

"Have you heard anything from Lady Penelope?"

"She j-j-just contacted me, and will get to you as f-f-soon as she c-c-can."

"Thanks Brains. Keep me informed about the Hood."

"FAB Alan."

As they were making a fast approach toward the rescue site, Fermat looked over at Alan in concern.

"If the Hood has Thunderbird 2, how are we going to get them out? The mole was on Thunderbird 2, and if they could dig out by hand, they would have by now."

"Because I'm hoping that they followed protocol. In a situation regarding a possible cave in, the first thing that they would do would be to unload the mole, so that it would be ready and waiting if they need to use it. The Hood may have taken 2, but he left us everything that we needed to save my family." Alan said this with a lot more confidence than he was actually feeling. What if they hadn't unloaded the mole? There were manual drills on board all of the birds, but would that be enough? What if it wasn't? _Stop it! Stop with the worst case scenarios! Freaking out is not going to help anybody. We'll deal with the what-ifs later!_ He reached over and cut the afterburners. The craft jolted with the change in velocity. Alan saw Thunderbird 1 on the ground, and began to prepare for landing. He wouldn't admit it to anybody, but he was a little worried about that part.

He felt the landing gear touch down, and it was probably a little more jarring than it probably should have been, but he had done it. They were here, and they were in one piece. His elation was heightened when he saw the mole sitting patiently by the entrance to the tunnels.

"Yes!" He turned to Fermat. "Let's go save my family!"

TBC... i promise it won't take me as long this time! but review to let me know what you think!


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: **hey there guys, i know that it has been many months since my last update. but no excuses, here is the next chapter of Grow Up: the Sequel. i hope that you all enjoy it, and the next chapter will be up in a couple of days, this time i really promise!!

oh, and they are still not mine

**Chapter 10**

Alan outfitted each of them with a headset and flashlight. Grabbing several extra oxygen tanks, the two of them headed towards the mole.

"Dad, this is Alan. Can you hear me?" There was nothing but silence on the other end. "Scott? John? Can anybody hear me?" Still, there was silence. "Brains, are you getting anything from them?"

"Negative, Alan. But I am still reading 5 life signals. The mineral deposits m-must be c-confusing the sh-short range c-c-communications as well as mine."

Alan pulled himself up into the big lumbering machine. "Fermat check the emergency medical supplies, back compartment." Alan started to bring the machine online. "Brains, what can you tell me about the structural stability of the tunnel?"

"The whole t-tunnel system seems to be unst-stable, but I believe that the best area to dr-dr-drill through is through the w-w-wall of the opposing tunnel. It sh-should lead you r-r-right into their ch-chamber."

"FAB Brains. Let me know when I get there." Alan flipped on the viewing monitor and took a sonar scan. Immediately the system of tunnels appeared on the screen. He could see where his family was trapped, and he quickly located the tunnel that Brains was referring to. "Alright Fermat, lets move."

They had almost reached the designated area of the tunnel when the call came in. It was patchy, but what Alan heard was enough to make his stomach drop to his ankles.

"Alan….Hood took….2….Switzerland ….U.N…..500 mil….bomb….1 hour to comply." His heart was pounding. He remembered talking about this in school. The U.N. leaders were having their conference in Switzerland, and unless he was drastically mistaken, Brains had just told him that the Hood was asking for 500 million dollars or a bomb would go off, presumably in or near the complex. Alan was starting to panic. His family needed him, but so did they. He couldn't just let them die, but saving them meant leaving his family. _What the hell am I supposed to do?_

"Fermat, take the mole and keep going, it's only a little further up. I'm going after the Hood."

"Wait! You want me to do this? By myself?" Fermat was starting to panic. Alan grabbed him by the shoulders and looked him in the eyes. "Fermat, you know this machine. Hell, you helped build it! So I have faith in you. The Thunderbirds need you Fermat. I need you. Please!" Fermat just stared at Alan, and then a smile broke out on his face. "FAB Alan!" He turned and climbed into position on the mole.

"Penny and Parker should be here soon!" Alan shouted over his shoulder as he ran towards the tunnels mouth. He boarded TB1 and began to power her up. "Brains, can you tell me where the Hood is?"

"Well, Th-Thunderbird 2 is 20 miles couth of the Conference building, but- wait, Alan, wh-what are you doing?"

"I have to stop him Brains. He's going to use my dad's dream to hurt thousands of people. He'll destroy everything that the Thunderbirds stand for. I have to at least try."

"B-But Alan, you should w-wait for-"

"Wait? Brains he gave them an hour. They are now down to 50 minutes. If I wait, they die. Now you can either work with me, or not, but either way I'm going."

There was a pause. "FAB Alan. You are c-cleared for take off." Alan lifted 1 of the ground and shot towards the coordinates that Brains was feeding him. As he was getting closer, he contacted Brains again. "Is there anything that you can tell me about the explosive the Hood plans on using?"

"I have done a complete s-scan of the ship, and I am g-g-getting a weird energy s-signature in the rear of the ship. It is d-definitely the bomb. But it does not h-h-have any kind of n-nuclear properties, and in fact it doesn't even seem t-t-to be that large. Certainly n-not large enough to c-c-carry out the threat that the H-Hood is using. There m-may be a second device th-that the scanners s-simply can't detect."

Alan thought that that was very unlikely. Thunderbird 5 had the most sophisticated technology on the planet. If they couldn't find it, then he didn't think that a second device actually existed. What was the Hood playing at? Confusion welled up inside of him, but he quickly pushed it aside. He had to concentrate on the mission at hand.

_Meanwhile in the tunnel_

The explosions and resulting cave-ins had shook Jeff and the boys up pretty good. Near as he could figure it, Virgil was suffering from a concussion, and Gordon had a broken arm. All 5 of them would be sporting a wide array of cuts and bruises for a while. Scott and John were trying to dig a way out through one of the collapsed walls, but the wall was proving to be unstable, and they didn't even know if it was the wall that would lead them further into the tunnels or back to the entrance.

Jeff had been trying to contact Alan or Brains since he had talked to Alan before, but all he got was silence. He trusted that Alan would try his best to get to them in time, but he was still worried. The thought of Alan piloting TB3 for the first time, along, sent his heart to his stomach. Alan may have mastered the simulations like he had told him, but simulations and the real thing were two very different things.

His sons seemed to be a little skeptical. "Dad, I know that you think that he's ready for this, but he really is still just a kid. He's not trained to handle rescues like this. Hell, he's not trained to handle rescues at all."

Jeff turned to face his four oldest sons. "He's a Tracy, and he's grown up with rescues all of his life." Alan's words came back to him. "You just have to have hope." He settled in to wait with his sons for the rescue that he hoped would be coming soon.

A half-hour later, Jeff was getting light headed, and he could tell that the rest of his sons were not any better off. The air would not last them mush longer. And that's when he felt it. The low, steady rumble coming from the left side of the chamber. It just kept getting louder and louder until suddenly, the metal claws broke through the rough rocky surface. As the machine retreated, the floodlights coming off the mole made it hard to see their rescuer.

"Alan?" He felt an oxygen mask being held to his face and suddenly Fermat was there in front of him, telling him to take deep breaths. Fermat left his side to go and distribute oxygen to the rest of the Tracy's and soon he was back with Jeff.

"Mr. Tracy, are you alright?" He nodded his head. "Fermat, where's Alan?" Fermat looked at him with worry as he helped Jeff to his feet. "He's g-gone! He w-went after the Hood! We h-have to help him!" Fermat told them what he knew as they made their way out of the tunnel. They were almost to the entrance when they got a message from Penny, telling them that she was 5 minutes out. "Penny, I'll need you to secure the mole and then meet us in Switzerland, contact Brains for the full update."

"FAB Jeff. And do be careful."

They made their way over to where TB3 sat waiting for them while Fermat and Brains filled them in on what was going on. Scott and John took the controls, getting ready to lift her up, but all Jeff could think about was the fact that his youngest son was off facing a mad-man by himself. The thought chilled him to his very core. _Please look after him Lucy. I can't lose him too._ They flew toward Switzerland and the coordinates that Brains had given them, all the while pushing the Bird to its known limits, and then some. They all felt it, the need to be there with Alan.

When they were just a couple of minutes out, they got the news from Brains that TB2 was on the move. They quickly made the course adjustment, and realized that they were heading towards the conference building. They were able to catch a glimpse of TB2 before everyone on board gasped in horror at what they were witnessing.

Please review and let me know what you think


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Hey guys, Chapter 11 is here! Chapter 12 is written and will be posted tomorrow! Enjoy!

I own nothing, i swear

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**Chapter 11**

Alan landed Thunderbird 1 in the same clearing that Thunderbird 2 was resting. He took a moment to survey the area before he quickly exited the bird and ran over to the open hatch of Thunderbird 2. He made his way up the ramp when a thought occurred to him. _Why wasn't there anybody patrolling the outside? Why wasn't I stopped? I mean, Thunderbird 1 is kind of hard to miss. _He shook his head, pushing those feelings to the back of his mind. He was making his way towards the back of the ship when another nagging thought came to him. _There doesn't seem to be anybody on the whole ship. What the hell is going on? _He looked at his watch. He had 10 minutes until the bomb was set to go off. He had to find that explosive! He unlatched the door to the engine room and stepped inside.

"Well this is interesting." Alan whirled around, looking for the owner of the voice. "I was expecting somebody to come and try to stop me, but I wasn't expecting it to be you." Alan realized that he knew the owner of that voice. The Hood's voice was being piped through the speakers of Thunderbird 2. "You're even more like your father than I thought."

"What are you talking about?" Alan was slowly backing up towards the central core, eyes scanning for the bomb.

"You're here, Jeff Tracy's not. Which can only mean that you left him in that mine. You left him to die to come after me. You left him to die, like he left me to die. Like he left your mother to die. Very fitting of a Tracy heir."

_He doesn't know about Fermat!_ "Whatever you may think about my father, I am proud to be Jeff Tracy's son, and nothing you say will change that, you son of a bitch!" Alan had spotted the bomb.

"Yes, very much Jeff Tracy's son. Well Alan, now you will die knowing that your choice put your family to death, and you weren't even able to stop me."

"I will stop you, you evil bast-"

"Enough talk! Goodbye Alan." Alan could feel the craft vibrating, could hear the increase whine of the engines. Thunderbird 2 was on the move. He made his way on unsteady feet over to the bomb. He ripped the detonator out of the block of C4, and threw them both down the garbage hatch. If he was expecting to hear the Hood's voice, cursing him for foiling his plans, he was left wanting. That's when the true nature of the Hood's plan hit him like and anvil.

"Oh my God!" The C4 wasn't the weapon, Thunderbird 2 was! The C4 was only a distraction, adding a little extra boom power, but even with out the explosive device on board, Thunderbird 2 was more than capable of doing enough damage on its own. Explosive or not, it would kill thousands of people!

He ran towards the cockpit. _I have to take Thunderbird 2 off autopilot! _Skidding to a halt in front of the cockpit doors, he clumsily punched in the access code. After the third try, he slammed his fists into the wall. _Come on! Have to focus!_ He took a deep breath and focused on steadying his hand. The doors slid open. His elation was short lived, however, when he got his first glimpse at the condition of the cockpit. The comm. board was a complete disaster.

He looked at his watch. 4 minutes until impact. He hurriedly tried to punch in the manual override code, but the computer remained locked on to this current course. _Dammit! _ He looks at his watch, just over 3 minutes left. _I don't know what the hell I'm doing here! I need help, but how…_ He looked down at his watch and mentally slapped himself.

"Brains, can you hear me? The Hood has Thunderbird 2 on a collision course for the summit building. Auto pilot will not disengage. I need you to talk me through it!" Brains voice was patchy, and Alan could only make out every couple of words. He looked up and out the view screen, and was surprised to see the summit building filling up his view. "Brains, if you can hear me, this isn't working. Time for plan B." He looked at his watch. Less than 2 minutes left. He went to the main control panel, and pried it off. He reached in and ripped out all of the wires, cutting off all of the power to the engines. He felt the bird give a tremendous shudder.

Grabbing hold of the yoke, Alan knew he only had one chance- use the current velocity and wind resistance to maneuver Thunderbird 2 away from the building. He manually moved the air flaps, and then grabbed the yoke and pulled back hard and to the right. The bird was bucking, but he tightens his grip and keeps hold. The bird continued to buck against the wind, but it slowly started to move. Alan's arms where trembling, the strain of trying to hold the yoke in position making his limbs shake with fatigue.

Thunderbird 2 made its way past the building, missing it by what must have been mere feet, and headed into the wooded area behind it. Alan relaxed his grip and let go of the yoke, knowing that there was nothing more that he could do. The bird was dropping like a rock, and he could feel the thuds of the underbelly taking out trees already. Alan turned and ran from the cockpit, trying to put as much distance between himself and the point of impact as possible, but knowing that, regardless, he was probably not going to make it out of this.

But he couldn't stop his heart from swelling as he neared the corridor turn off for the escape pods, almost daring to believe that maybe, just maybe he would make it back to see his family.

Then he was air born, the only sound he could hear was the torturous crunching of metal and the thunderous sounds of Thunderbird 2 meeting her demise. His flight was short lived, and for an instant he felt his body connect with the hard and unforgiving surface of the bulkhead, and then there was nothing.


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N:** hey guys, sorry about not posting sooner, i had an unanticipated family obligation all weekend. but i'm back, and here is chapter 12!! i'm pretty sure that there is only going to be one more chapter for this story, and it is taking longer than i would like for me to get it right, so look for it some time next week, i hope!! anywho, read and enjoy!!

And by the way, if you didn't know? i own nothing... sad day for me...

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**Chapter 12**

Jeff and the boys could only watch in horror as Thunderbird 2 sank into the wooded area behind the building, leaving a trail of devastation behind it. Then all that they saw was the smoke and flames of Thunderbird 2 in ruins, with Alan still aboard.

Jeff stood there paralyzed, shocked to his very core by what he was witnessing. He could hear his sons trying to contact Alan, could feel Thunderbird 3 coming down for a landing, but all he could see in front of him was fire and smoke. His son, his youngest boy, was trapped there, trapped by a madman, trapped because he had done the right thing by saving those people, even at a danger to-

"Dad! Dad, snap out of it! We need to go help him!" Gordon was in front of him now, his concerned face taking the place of the smoke and fire. "Dad, are you alright? Alan needs us, come on!" Gordon's words finally started to penetrate the daze that he was in, and before he knew it, his body was moving into action before his mind had a chance to catch up.

"Dad?" Gordon again looked at him with concern. "I'm fine son. Let's worry about Alan." And with that they were off. They had landed Thunderbird 3 as close as they could, but it was still a distance away. Fueled by their fear for their youngest, the Tracy's covered the distance in a matter of minutes. To them it felt like hours.

Thunderbird 2 was in bad shape. As they pierced the clearing, Jeff looked at the devastation and wondered how someone could survive a crash like that. _Stop it! We will find him! We will get him back! We have to get him back…_ They worked their way through the clearing, and finally made it to the enormous bird.

"Well, I don't think that getting in is going to be a problem." Everyone looked at Gordon, and then back to the bird. There was a hole, probably 15 feet across, slashed into the side of Thunderbird 2. John started to rush inside, but Jeff held him back.

"Dad! What are you doing? We need to find him! He needs us!"

"I know John! But we won't do Alan any good if we run in there half cocked!" John calmed down, if only marginally. "Alright. Now, Brains, are you getting any kind of signal from Alan's watch?"

"Uh, th-th-that would be a n-negative Mr. Tracy."

"Alright, it could have just gotten broken in the crash. Now we go about this smart. John, Gordon, you two pair off, take the front part of the ship. Scott, Virgil, you're with me. Check in every 5 minutes. And boys, be safe." He looked his sons in the eyes. "But let's bring our boy home."

Upon entering Thunderbird 2, doubts started making their way into their heads. Giving each other one last look, they split off in search of their youngest.

Every step sent jarring pains up Gordon's arm, the immobilizer and air cast not really helping all that much. Another couple of steps and a loose piece of debris had him unsuccessfully holding back a groan. "Gordon?" John was right there, holding him steady, rubbing his back through the pain. "You need to rest for a second?" He just shook his head. "No, no we have to keep going. It's not like I've never broken anything before." He gave John a small smirk, which quickly vanished. "Besides, Alan needs us more than I need a break." John gave him another look, then nodded and turned back around, checking in with their father. But Gordon noticed that John stuck a little closer to him now.

3 check-ins later, and Jeff had no good news. The going was slow with all the debris, and they didn't want to leave any corner unchecked. Up ahead he saw Virgil falter, and rest heavily against the corridor wall. He made his way quickly over to his son.

"Virgil? Are you okay?" Virgil looked up at him, and it took him a second to focus on his father. "Dad, I'm fine, just got a little dizzy, that's all."

"Alright, rest here a minute. Scott and I will check out this next room ourselves." Virgil started to protest, but Jeff quickly cut him off. "Virgil, stay here! Rest! I can't be worrying about 2 sons right now, okay? Just, please." Virgil nodded, then slid down the wall and took a seat on the floor. Jeff met up with Scott and diligently started searching.

Tears started to gather in Virgil's eyes, and then silently started to fall. And it wasn't from the smoke or the marching band that had taken up residence in his skull. No, it wasn't any of those things at all. They needed to find Alan. They just needed to. Before he knew it, he was being hauled to his feet, Scott's face filling up his vision.

"Virg?" He blinked away the tears and swiped a soot covered glove across his face. "Scott, I'm fine, I just… we need to find him. He needs to be okay. He just… he just needs to be okay."

"I know Virg, we have a lot of things to make right. But right now we just have to concentrate on finding him, getting him out of here." Virgil nodded, and looked at his father. "Has John checked in yet?"

"Yes, nothing yet. Let's keep going." And they moved further into the debris.

John and Gordon were coming up on the main corridor leading to the cockpit. John was keeping a keen eye out, searching for any kind of sign of Alan. If he was trying to make his way to one of the emergency escape pods, then he should be close. But that's only if he was in the cockpit. Damnit! _Alan, where are you?_ They made their way through the mangled doors and started to look around. And that's when John saw it. A foot. Alan's foot. There was no mistaking those size 12 red converse All-stars. "Gordon! He's here! He's by the door!" He could hear Gordon calling into their father and brothers, but his focus was on the pile of rubble in front of him. He started removing the top debris, all the while calling out to his little brother.

With every piece of debris that he removed, his heart died a little more, and he began taking stock of the injuries that he saw. Both Alan's left arm and leg were broken in several places. He moved a piece of debris that was obscuring Alan's face, and hear Gordon gasp at what they saw. There was blood everywhere, and John's vision started to waver and gray out as his breathing hitched. There was a gash running along the right side of his head, and from the looks of it his left cheek and brow bone had been crushed. He felt hands on his shoulders, heard his name being called, but he couldn't answer. When had he started crying? He didn't know, and he could hear the choked back sobs of his family around him, but he could not give comfort. His mind was focused solely on Alan. And when he tuned out everything else, his fathers frantic questions and his brothers helping to remove the last of the debris, he heard it.

He didn't want to believe it at first, part of his brain telling him that if he started hoping now, he would just be disappointed in the end. But the part of his brain that wouldn't, couldn't accept what he saw in front of him, honed into that sound and wouldn't let it go. It was soft, and wet, and had not rhythm he could find, but it was more precious than any sound he had ever heard.

Breath.

"He's alive." It came out softly, on a breath that he didn't know that he had been holding. "He's alive!" Louder this time, his voice shocking his family into silence. His movements turned more frantic as he searched the floor around him for the equipment that he needed. "He's alive! Help me!"

The next moments were a flurry of activity, C-collar, air casts, and backboards were in place in seconds, and then they were on the move. Everything was a blur as they moved Alan out of the bird. They heard voices and sounds that barley even registered in their minds. Penny…Parker…Hood?...authorities… They continued on their hurried path back to Thunderbird 3. There were no words spoken between them, there was just urgent efficiency. They boarded Thunderbird 3 and Scott immediately started to power her up. Cordon radioed into Brains and Kyrano, filling them in on the situation and what to prep the med-bay for. John and Virgil immediately gloved up and started searching through their medical supplies for what they could do in the here and now. And Jeff…sat with his son. There didn't seem to be a single spot on Alan's body that wouldn't cause him pain, but Jeff gingerly picked up his right hand and just held it. He held it and stared at his baby boy. It started with a single tear that he hastily wiped away. Then another. And another. As his two boys started to clean Alan up, he couldn't hold it back any longer. All of the emotions that he had been holding in for months came to the surface. He cried for what was said, and the things that weren't, the actions that had been taken, and the actions that hadn't. His sobs could be heard through the ship, and his sons shared in his release, tears steaming down their faces as they worked to bring their brother home.

Please review and tell me what you thought!


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: **So here it is, the last chapter of the story!! wow, its taken me a lot longer to finish this than i thought it would! thank you to everyone who has stuck with it, i know it must have been trying at times to wait for me to update! REMINDER: if you need a refresher on the Jeff/Alan blow-up, go back and read GROW UP. oh, and see if you can pick out the characteristics that Alan gives to each of his family members during his "thought process", but don't worry, i'll tell you at the end which goes with who! happy reading...

By the way, still not mine, i just get to take them out for a spin every now and then...

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**Chapter 13**

Tracy Island was quiet. It had been for days now. The family hardly spoke to each other, so caught up in the emotions and grief of the past week. They had even cut down on the number of rescues that they went out on, only leaving when the situation absolutely called for it. Nobody wanted to be away for too long.

Nobody wanted to leave his side. It had been more than a week since they had gotten Alan out of Thunderbird 2 and brought him home. It had been touch and go for a while on the ride back, the broken ribs puncturing his lung, causing the irregularity in breathing that John had heard. It had taken a while to get him completely stable and patched up, but it looked like Alan would be able to make a complete, and very slow, recovery.

If he woke up.

They had taken Alan off of the respirator, his lungs strong enough once again to breath without assistance. They had hoped that that had been a sign that he would soon open his eyes, but after almost two days, they were still waiting. But Alan was here, with them, and that gave them hope. They would wait for him as long as he needed.

Not to say that they would do it patiently.

The moment that they had landed, Jeff had told Scott to refuel Thunderbird 3 and get Brains sown from Thunderbird 5, much to Scotts chagrin. He had been moody ever since. The injuries that Virgil and Gordon had sustained had made them grouchy to say the least, but for several days now Virgil had been able to take out his frustration at the whole situation on his piano. Gordon, on the other hand, could only stare longingly out the window at the pool, and unable to take out his frustration that way because of his cast caused him to get in peoples faces quite a bit more than usual. And John was just…quiet. More quiet than usual in fact. He could be there, in the room with his family, and not say a word, or acknowledge their presence, for hours. A look at his face told Jeff that John was still feeling the emotions of the previous week, and deeply at that. Jeff had heard him several nights this week moving around the house, seemingly avoiding his bedroom.

Jeff wasn't fairing that much better than his sons, but took out his fear and frustrations only in the privacy of his own bedroom. He couldn't afford to fall apart in front of his children, not now, now again. So he went about his day, letting his children vent in their own way. He slept and he ate, and he sat with Alan, hoping that each day this melancholy existence that he Tracy household had taken on would end, and that Alan would wake up.

It was on day 10 that Jeff walked down to the med-bay, and paused at the doors. The voice he heard on the other side soothed part of his frayed nerves, and while it wasn't the voice that he had been waiting to hear, it made him smile a little none-the-less. He stood there and let John's voice wash over him, listening to the pitch rise and fall with the emotions of the story he was weaving. The books John authored were best sellers, and the eloquence with which he spoke now reminded Jeff just why that was.

He opened the doors and walked over to his two blond sons just as the story was coming to a close, and gently rested his hand on the back of John's neck. He gave it a gentle squeeze and moved around to the other side of the bed to take a chair on Alan's left side.

"I was just retelling Alan about how he saved the day," he said with a small lopsided smile, and then leaned in closer to Alan. "But I'll tell you the part about how you celebrated your victory over the Hood in a sea of adoring women fans some other time, when dad's not around, alright sprout?" It was whispered loudly, intentionally meant for Jeff's ears, and made him smile, which he suspected was the intended purpose.

"Interesting choice of story material son." He caught John's eye, and immediately saw that John's spirit had dampened somewhat by what he had said, and chastised himself. He was just glad that John was finally coming back to being his old self again. The restless nights had gotten less frequent, and some life was coming back to his gaunt face. He was about to say more on the subject when John beat him to it.

"I just wanted him to know how much of a hero he really is. I just…I needed him to know. He deserves to know." He walked around and behind his father on his way out the door, and Jeff caught his arm and gave it a little squeeze of agreement. "Besides, the papers never do it justice anyway." He nodded his head in the direction of the foot of Alan's bed, and Jeff saw the news sheets of the rescue. "I'll bring you down some coffee or something in a little while."

Jeff caught his eye before he made it through the door. "John, thank you." And they both knew that Jeff was not only talking about the coffee. John smiled at his father before exiting, leaving Jeff alone with his youngest son.

For the past several days, every time that he had sat here with Alan, he had regaled him with stories, much like John just had. Stories from when he was a kid, or how he had met Lucille, or the antics of his older brothers that they had never wanted Alan to know. But today he sat by this son in silence, thinking about that day. If Penny and Parker hadn't arrived when they did, then the Hood would have gotten away with the devastation he had tried to cause in the Thunderbirds name. They had taken him down from a distance, tranquilizing him as soon as he had come within range, heading straight for Thunderbird 1 to make his getaway. But he was now in custody, in a maximum security cell. They had also been a great help in returning all of the birds and equipment back to the island. But John was right when he said that Alan deserved to know how much of a hero he really was.

"Alan." Jeff shifted a little closer, so that he could rest his elbows on the bed. "Son, I need you to wake up. I can't tell you how proud I am of you if you don't wake up. Please Alan. Come home." And that was how he spent his time with Alan that day, holding his hand and asking Alan to come home, come back to him.

--FAB FAB FAB FAB FAB--

_Dark_

_So dark_

_Am I dead? Mom? No, not dead_

_Pain. Dull, pulsing. Should be more_

_Everything feels……….._

_Cloudy_

_Alone_

_Not alone? Warmth. Voices. Presence. Feelings of………._

_Strength_

_Serenity_

_Passion_

_Vibrance_

_Home. Safety_

_Family. My family_

_Anger? No anger. Love. Me? Them? Both_

_Fear? Beg. Plead. Ask_

_Home_

_Love it. Want it. Need it_

_Family_

_Home_

_Home………_

--FAB FAB FAB FAB--

Opening his eyes took much more energy than he thought it was supposed to. In fact, everything took more energy than he thought that it was supposed to. His eyes felt gritty, but blinking them several times seemed to help that along. He felt like his mouth was full of cotton, and his head too, now that he thought about it. And his limbs felt _heavy. _ He knew that he should feel pain, but it wasn't there. Drugs? Probably. And now that he was awake, all he wanted to do was close his eyes and go back to sleep. He was just so _tired. _Wait, who was that? He turned his head slightly to see Scott slumped down in a chair sleeping. _See, I'll just follow Scott's lead, and maybe take a little nap…_

The door opened though, and he turned his head to the left to see who the newcomer was, and saw John backing into the room, two cups of coffee occupying his hands. He rounded on the bed, and in that instant caught Alan's gaze. The shattering of the coffee mugs as they met the floor woke up Scott with a start.

"Wha..? John what hap…?" But John was already at the bedside, grasping Alan's hand, and just looking into his eyes. "Alan! Oh my God, Alan!" Scott grabbed his other hand, and Alan shifted his gaze to meet Scott's.

"I'm getting dad and, and everybody! I'll be right back!" And John was off like a shot. Scott turned back to Alan, to find that his gaze was still fixed on him. "Alan, can you hear me? Are you alright?"

Alan opened his mouth to answer, but all that seemed able to come out was a croak. He tried again, with the same result, until Scott took the hint and grabbed him a cup of ice chips, giving him a few at the time. _Hmmm, much better._

"Scott…" So much was conveyed in just that one word. _What happened? Am I alright? Are you alright? What's going on?_

"Yeah, Alan. I'm right here. You're home, you're safe. Don't worry, dad should be here any-" The door slammed open and the rest of the family was suddenly there by his bedside.

His dad immediately gathered him up in a hug, both gentle and fierce at the same time. "Oh Alan." The hug continued, and Alan realized that his dad was muttering something into the crook of his neck. "…stupidest, brainless, selfless, bravest thing that you have ever done." He pulled back so that he was looking Alan in the eye. "And I have never been more proud to have you as my son." Tears were steaming down his face, and as he looked around he saw that his brother's eyes were deceptively bright. He felt his own eyes start to well in response. The heaviness of his limbs and the foggy sensation in his brain seemed to lessen a great deal with his family by his side.

"Alan, before anything else happens, we need to talk. What happened last break, I am so sorry, please believe that. What you said, it was the truth. Part of me will never want you to become a part of this organization for exactly that reason. You have more of your mother in you than you realize. Believe me, I wasn't the only one with a stubborn streak and a sharp tongue. But it's also because you are my youngest, and that will never change."

He paused, letting out a sigh. "I know that I have not been much of a father to you. Creating this organization, running the business, took me away from you more times than not, and that I will always regret. But letting you become a part of International Rescue means that I have to admit that you are growing up. That the little time that I have left to be an active father will be replaced by my becoming an observing father. You won't need me the same way that you need me now. You're growing into a fine young man Alan, and you're doing it without a lot of help from me, and I wasn't ready to accept that."

"Dad…" Alan looked at his father, and gently squeezed his hand. "You have helped me dad, more than you know."

It was here that his brothers took up the conversation. Scott held his gaze as he spoke. "Alan, we're sorry for treating you like a kid so much. I guess we never realized how much it really hurt you. But in your eyes, you are always going to be our youngest brother."

"Yeah," said Virgil. "There is always going to be that feeling in all of us, giving you a bit of a hard time, but a fierce need to protect you at the same time."

"Yeah bro!" Gordon leaned over and mussed up his hair a little before he continued. "It's all part of the big brother code, and you're the only younger brother that I've got!"

He smiled, and nodded his head at his brothers, knowing in his heart that what they said was true. His father spoke again. "We never wanted to drive you away Alan, and I never wanted you to change who you are. You are Alan Shepard Tracy, headstrong and argumentative, but unique and selfless, and an integral part of this family. I don't want you to be a copy of your brothers. There is nothing that I love more than having 5 very different sons. This family just wouldn't function properly if it was any other way."

"Dad…" Hid eyes welled with tears once again. "Dad, I'm sorry. I thought it was what you wanted. I mean, you're always comparing everything I do to my brothers. It felt like that was the only way that I would really be accepted."

"Never, Alan. I guess that's just my way of taking the easy way out. You are so different from your brothers. Sometimes I just don't know how to react to the arguments that we have. But I never wanted you to change who you are. I saw how unhappy you were. Nothing that makes you that unhappy would ever be what I wanted. What any of us would want. We love you for who you are. Understand?"

All he could do was bite his lip and nod his agreement, afraid that if he opened his mouth he would not be able to stop the sob that was threatening. That was what he wanted, what his heart had been waiting to hear for several long months.

"All right, let's let Alan get some rest. He still has quite a bit of recovering to do." Jeff noticed Alan's eyes go a little wider, and felt him tense for a second. "But I think that I'll stay here for a while and sit with you until you fall asleep. If you don't mind."

Jeff felt Alan relax, and was happy to realize that they were well on their way to mending the rift that had formed between them. His four other sons made their way out the door, each promising to be back in a little while. But Virgil paused at the door.

"Hey Alan?" He held the door open, halfway through already. "Yeah Virg?" Virgil gave him a little half smirk. "Don't think that you're off the hook for crashing my bird. That was so uncalled for!" And for the first time, he was glad that Alan didn't yet have the strength required to throw something at him as he scurried out the door.

**Please Review and let me know what you thought!!**

**Strength- Scott , Serenity- John , Passion- Virgil , Vibrance- Gordon , Home/Safety-Jeff**

**i am thinking about doing a short story focusing on John and his nightmares/restless nights that Jeff comments on. Good idea/Bad idea?**


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